Dates to Avoid for Your Wedding

     When preparing for your special day, the actual date is an important planning factor. We have organized a list of days for you to avoid so you can more easily figure out when to arrange your wedding in the years of 2012-2013.

Religious and Cultural Holidays

     Based on the religious background of you, your spouse and your guests, there are some days that you may not be allowed by your place of worship to have a wedding. Some examples include:

                                                       2012                                2013

Palm Sunday:                                 April 1                                March 24

Easter Sunday:                               April 8                                March 31

Passover:                                       April 7                                March 26

Tisha B’Av:                                     July 29                                July 16

Rosh Hashanah:                             September 17                     September 4

Yom Kippur:                                   September 26                     September 14

Hanukkah:                                      December 10-16                November 27-December 5

Christmas:                                      December 25                      December 25

Kwanzaa:                                        December 26 - January 1    December 26 - January 1

Holiday Weekends

     Holiday weekends (3-day weekends) shouldn’t necessarily be dates to avoid. You can host a less-expensive Sunday wedding, and your guests will have the day after to relax. The potential down side to having a wedding on these holiday weekends is that travel and hotel costs may be higher, and also some of your guests might already have plans.

                                                           2012                                2013

Martin Luther King Jr.:                   January 16                         January 21

Presidents’ Day:                             February 20                       February 18

Memorial Day:                                May 28                              May 27

Labor Day:                                      September 3                     September 2

Columbus Day:                               October 8                         October 14

Misc. Holidays to Keep In Mind

     New Year’s Eve and Day, especially when falling on a weekend, could be extremely expensive dates to get married on.  Some venues even hold their own NYE parties, making it challenging to book a reception spot.  New Year’s Day, sounds like a great date to start a new era of your life on, but being that most people are out late and drink on New Year’s Eve, a New Year’s Day wedding may not be wise.

     April Fools Day should generally be avoided as a wedding date, but this year it falls on a Sunday. If you and your significant other are the devious sort, this might be a chance to pull some practical jokes on your guests during the wedding ceremony!

     Mother’s Day (always on the second Sunday in May), should most likely be avoided, but could provide some opportunities for toasting and honoring the mothers in the room. 

     Father’s Day (always on the third Sunday in June), should most likely be avoided, but could provide some opportunities for toasting and honoring the fathers in the room.

     Halloween is not a great date for a traditional wedding, but for the more adventurous souls, a Halloween costume wedding could be a lot of fun.

                                                          2012                                2013

New Year’s Eve/Day                      December 31-January 1        December 31-January 1

April Fool’s Day                             April 1                                   April 1 

Mother’s Day                                 May 13                                  May 12

Father’s Day                                   June 17                                  June 16

Halloween                                      October 31                            October 31

Other Dates to Avoid:

You should be wary of any large conventions going on in your area or other regional events, because it could make booking hotel rooms and transportation for your guests difficult. Also, most weddings are on weekends, so if your friends and family are steadfast fans of a specific sports teams, try to avoid dates in which the teams are playing big games! 

Good luck to all of our engaged couples and may you find the perfect day to get married!